Friday, December 04, 2009

Dress like a Midwesterner

Freeze warnings have been called for the Las Vegas valley as arctic cold air has settled far south down the western mountains. Snow is on the high peaks around the Valley and light flurries have been promised. It's a sharp freeze, reminiscent of 5 below in the Midwest.

My extremities were freezing at the bus stop, when I saw a taciturn man buttoned up in a light stormcoat with a fur-trimmed hood, a tam hat, boots and gloves. In Vegas, because of the wide temp swings from day to night, residents here tend to dress on the light side. He wasnt.

The ensemble looked serious - and familiar, particularly the fur-trimmed hood on the coat, even though it was a thin shell. So I asked him: "You from Chicago?" He smiled and said only "Michigan."

Yep, you could tell he was from the upper midwest. Serious people dealing with serious weather. Ironically, his ensemble is suitable only for the midwestern spring, but he wore his togs with the experience of someone who knows the seriousness of a northern midwest winter.